Heisenberg knew perfectly well that Loki was behind all this.
But why?
The war was still raging. Why would Loki ask him to step in now? Could it be that the full Chitauri legion under Loki's command truly couldn't break through Asgard's defensive line? They couldn't break through?
Heisenberg had been keeping a close eye on the war. He saw clearly that while Asgard far outclassed the Chitauri forces in direct combat, their numbers were vastly inferior to the Chitauri horde. That made it nearly impossible for them to stop the Chitauri from pushing forward. The Chitauri advance had been steadily driving toward Earth. The projections said they would storm into Earth's atmosphere around ten tonight, just two hours away.
So Loki sought him out because...
Heisenberg tucked the question away in his mind and let the power of space carry him forward. He felt a sudden lightness beneath his feet, and in the next instant, he stood upon another world.
The moment he landed, Heisenberg studied the sun above with interest. Tsk, tsk. So this was Asgard, home of the immortals where the sun never set. But the realm of the gods was this chaotic?
The spatial energy around Heisenberg fully dissipated. He looked around. Directly ahead lay the city proper of Asgard, and not far off was the small theater he had once seen in a movie. Loki had once disguised himself as Odin and sat right there, watching a play that dramatized his own death.
Heisenberg ignored everything around him entirely. He simply strolled through the war and the screaming around him. He ambled all the way to the railing of that little theater, leaned against it, and gazed out at the vast and magnificent Asgardian city. The city had been briefly glimpsed in that second Thor movie, but the screentime had been far too short to truly showcase the splendor of a civilization that had stood for hundreds of thousands of years. Here, reality proved even more vivid than the film. Before Heisenberg's eyes, even the shortest building surpassed eight hundred meters in height.
"Tsk, tsk. Truly worthy of being called the realm of the gods," he murmured to himself.
Then he turned around and looked at the father and son locked in combat behind him. Or rather, it was a one-sided beating. Odin was holding Loki up in the air by the throat. Before Heisenberg had appeared, the moment Odin realized his son had used the Tesseract to summon some unknown entity, he had charged over, smashed a thunderbolt straight into Loki's face, and then casually grabbed him by the neck and hoisted him up.
But after Heisenberg appeared, Odin froze.
"Not Surtur, and not Thanos. This energy signature... it feels like a sun?!"
Hearing those words, Loki desperately grabbed at Odin's arm, trying to give his strangled throat just a little more room to breathe. Struggling, he spat at Odin with a face full of contempt.
"How could I possibly bring Surtur, the executioner of Ragnarok, into Asgard? I have no desire to destroy this place. The only one who will die is you, Father!"
Bang!
Odin hurled Loki away. He tumbled seven or eight times and finally came to a stop right beside Heisenberg, who had just turned around. Heisenberg looked at Loki with amusement, and Loki elegantly rose from the ground.
After standing up, he first straightened his clothes, then inclined his head toward Heisenberg.
"I am most gratified that you answered my invitation, esteemed Lord Heisenberg."
Straightening up, he shrugged helplessly at Heisenberg.
"As you can see, an Odin whose divine power has not yet fully dissipated is beyond my ability to handle. I suspect it will take at least another year before his divine power crumbles enough for him to lose the strength he's so proud of."
"Hmm," Heisenberg nodded. "So your original plan was to wait until he lost his power, then banish him?"
"Absolutely correct. Without your help, I would have devised a way to fake my death and hide right beside them. Maybe half a year, maybe a year. He would have eventually lost his power, just as I planned, because I interrupted his Odinsleep. Then, I would have killed him."
"No, you wouldn't have."
Heisenberg gave Loki an utterly certain smile, and the firmness in his tone made Loki's heart clench. Because the truth was exactly as Heisenberg had said. Loki really had no intention of killing his father. At most, he would have banished Odin from Asgard, just to let him taste the bitterness of being cast aside and forgotten.
And Heisenberg, for his part, was laughing inwardly at Loki's words. When he thought about it, this was 2012. Next year, 2013, was when the events of Thor: The Dark World would begin. At that time, Loki would fake his death, take the opportunity to banish the now completely powerless Odin, and sit himself upon the throne. His impostor identity wouldn't even be seen through by his brother until five years later, when the events of Thor: Ragnarok started. Heisenberg already knew this plot inside and out, so naturally he saw through Loki's intentions with perfect clarity.
Loki, now convinced he had been completely seen through, mentally elevated Heisenberg's status yet another notch and quietly stepped back behind him.
"Perhaps you are right, my lord. Even raising a mere animal, one invests a sliver of affection. How much more so when I am dealing with Odin, who has accompanied me for over one thousand five hundred years? But with you here, my plan no longer matters. I am willing to yield the honor of defeating Odin to you, so that you may spread your majesty across what is destined to be your divine kingdom even sooner. In all the Nine Realms, no god is more qualified than you to be the sovereign of all. So please, enjoy this glorious battle that leads to final victory!"
With those words, Loki continued to retreat until he reached the edge of the small theater, where he finally stopped. In the center, only Heisenberg and Odin remained.
Looking at Heisenberg, who radiated power like the midday sun, Odin let out a long sigh.
"I once heard Heimdall speak your name, god of Midgard. But I never imagined our clash would come so soon, merely days later."
"There is much you never imagined," Heisenberg said, casually pointing toward the palace in the distance. "That is your palace. Turned into a block of ice?"
"No, it became a trophy for one of my sons. A father's pride."
"Hah, what a touching answer. What do you think, Loki?"
Hearing Odin's response, Heisenberg laughed and looked at Loki, who helplessly spread his hands.
"Don't ask. If you ask, I'll just say I don't understand what's gotten into Odin either. Honestly, he was never like this before. Acting like some kind of... saint?"
As he spoke, Loki pulled out the Casket of Ancient Winters from inside his coat. The moment the deep blue crystal appeared, the thick layers of ice encasing the palace rapidly dissolved into frigid mist and streamed back into the casket. Once the palace had returned to normal, Loki immediately waved at Heisenberg.
"Your Majesty? Boss? Supreme Leader? What do you prefer I call you? Anyway, I have a suggestion I hope you'll consider."
"Hmm?"
Heisenberg simply stood there, watching Loki put on a show. Loki pointed toward the Asgardian city, where battle still raged in the distance.
"A clash between two god-kings naturally requires a sufficient audience. After all, whichever of you two wins will hold the glory of Asgard for countless years to come. So, I would like to request that you first ease up the assault from those Chitauri bugs."
"Heh, you just can't resist saving your own people. But fine, I'll grant your request," Heisenberg said with a nod.
He then turned his gaze toward the distant city. The red light in his eyes rapidly gathered, and in a brief moment, countless dazzling beams of heat vision lanced out, each one precisely drilling into the head of a Chitauri warrior. Over three thousand remaining Chitauri soldiers instantly became nothing more than corpses. Nor did he spare the two final landing crafts patrolling the sky. The red beams flashed, and the ships were sliced into a dozen pieces. Before they could even issue a groan, they crashed into the city below.
The Asgardian warriors who had been fighting in blood suddenly looked up in shock. All of them turned in unison toward the source of that crimson light. The very same spot that Heimdall, the berserkers, and countless civilians were now staring at.
At the same time, freed from the ice, Frigga led a procession of Asgardian goddesses and handmaidens out of the palace.
Above, on the palace heights, the gazes of the gods burned with intensity. Below, in the city, the people's eyes shone with reverence. At the intersection of those two gazes, Loki raised his hands high.
"Oh, to hell with it. I know I'm not worthy of this kind of attention. I'm leaving, I'm leaving!"
He openly strode away from the square, heading straight for his mother and finally stopping beside Frigga. Paying no heed to Odin's restless eight-legged steed nearby, nor to Heisenberg as he began to levitate, his black trench coat billowing fiercely behind him, Loki simply smiled and said to his mother.
"Look around, Mother. I've wounded Asgard, but everyone is still alive. Surprised?"
"No. Because I have the feeling you're about to say goodbye to me, my child."
Frigga's face was filled with worry, as it always was. She reached out and gently stroked Loki's long hair.
"I know what you intend to do, and I know what you will do. But no matter the outcome, don't leave. This is your home, child."
"No, no, no. This is nothing more than a prison that's held me for one thousand five hundred years. Even if I had the chance to become the warden one day, I would scorn such an opportunity. Besides, this isn't the time for chatting. Don't you look forward to Odin's defeat? After all, you were a woman he took by force. He may love you, but he doesn't respect you enough."
"But your father has never been defeated."
"That's because he's never faced Lord Heisenberg."
"As long as the battle hasn't ended, the outcome remains unknown."
"But I can see it, Mother. Once I experienced his power, I understood one thing clearly. In all the Nine Realms, no one is qualified to be his enemy."
With those words, Loki stepped a little further away from his mother. He quickly blended into the crowd of guards and handmaidens beside him, just like every Asgardian present, watching the standoff ahead with eager anticipation.
Under the gaze of everyone, Heisenberg took off his black trench coat. He folded it neatly, then tossed it. The perfectly folded coat drifted right into Loki's arms.
(°_°)
Loki, under countless looks of confusion and indignation, caught the coat with a face full of bewilderment.
Meanwhile, Heisenberg was rolling up the sleeves of his shirt to his forearms. Watching Heisenberg apparently preparing to fight just like that, Odin coldly furrowed his brow.
"God of Midgard, are you insulting me?"
"Insulting?"
Heisenberg glanced up at Odin, then around at the gathered Asgardians. Then he smiled, casually.
"Of course not. I just haven't had the time to forge my own armor and blade, that's all."
"Hmph!"
Odin's displeasure finally surfaced. He lightly tapped the butt of Gungnir against the ground.
"My vault holds ample armor and weaponry. You may take your pick."
Hearing Odin's offer, Heisenberg paused for a moment, then threw his head back with a hearty laugh and shook his head.
"Thanks, you stubborn old man who's not exactly gifted at raising children. But... I don't need them."
/-\
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